Piper Sandler Lowers Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Price Target to $168.00

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) had its target price cut by Piper Sandler from $190.00 to $168.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the oil and gas company’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on MPC. StockNews.com downgraded Marathon Petroleum from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Marathon Petroleum to a strong-buy rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a sector outperform rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Raymond James cut their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a strong-buy rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $192.23.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of MPC stock opened at $171.73 on Friday. Marathon Petroleum has a fifty-two week low of $108.88 and a fifty-two week high of $221.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.58, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.45. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $184.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $174.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.43.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $32.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.07 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 25.87%. Marathon Petroleum’s quarterly revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $6.09 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum will post 19.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 30th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the oil and gas company to buy up to 7.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.92%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.48%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MPC. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 400.0% in the first quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 125 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Company Profile

Marathon Petroleum Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated downstream energy company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Refining & Marketing, and Midstream segments. The Refining & Marketing segment refines crude oil and other feedstocks at its refineries in the Gulf Coast, Mid-Continent, and West Coast regions of the United States; and purchases refined products and ethanol for resale and distributes refined products, including renewable diesel, through transportation, storage, distribution, and marketing services.